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Heated hearing on McMillan Drop-In Center closure: providers warn of gaps, city outlines respite plan and mitigation steps
Summary
Departments presented plans to convert McMillan from a 24-hour drop-in to a 60-bed medical respite collocated with a 12-bed sobering center; dozens of service providers, formerly homeless residents and advocates urged the Board to fund a replacement 24-hour drop-in and raised concerns about showers, transportation, turnaways and impacts on vulnerable clients.
The Budget & Finance Committee held an extended hearing on the planned closure of the McMillan Drop-In Center and its conversion into a medical respite facility, drawing sustained public testimony from providers, formerly homeless residents and advocacy groups.
Department of Public Health (DPH) staff described the proposed medical respite as a 60-bed facility collocated with an approximately 12-bed sobering center that will provide primary and specialty care, transport for IV therapy and linkages to case management, benefits counseling and housing services. DPH said it would stop accepting new assessments on Sept. 22 and would close the facility for renovation on Oct. 13 so the respite can be constructed and opened in the spring. DPH acknowledged contractors’ estimates now project 24 months to complete construction and discussed adjustments to documents accordingly.
The Human Services Agency (HSA) outlined mitigation plans for shelter reservation hours and after-hours access: Glide Memorial will host changes terminal and staff from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.; Central City Hospitality House will cover 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; the city will activate a homeless storage/overflow location at 150 Otis for 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.; MAP vans and outreach teams will provide mobile after-hours access past 11 p.m.; and 10 beds at Embassy South were set aside for late-night post-curfew reservations. HSA described several pilot arrangements with nonprofit partners to absorb reservation hours and said available shelter capacity (including a newly funded Saint Boniface program and winter shelter activations) would be monitored.
Advocates and service providers strongly criticized the plan to close McMillan’s drop-in services without a guaranteed 24-hour replacement. Common concerns raised during a long public-comment period included: lack of reliable data on nightly turnaways from McMillan; transportation barriers for clients asked to travel farther; reduced access to showers (McMillan provides showers to about 45 people daily); loss of an accessible low-barrier entry point for elderly, disabled and mentally ill clients; and the erosion of a centralized, trusted location that providers use for referrals and emergency placements.
Several speakers urged the Board to appropriate emergency funding to maintain 24-hour drop-in services or to delay closure until a community-backed plan is in place. The Shelter Monitoring Committee presented a site-visit report noting full capacity, working ADA shower conditions, and client testimonies underscoring McMillan’s role as a safe space. DPH and HSA committed to provide turnaway data and to meet with advocacy groups and service providers to pursue mitigation options; the Chair continued the hearing to the call of the chair for follow-up.
No committee vote or binding policy change occurred at the hearing; the item was continued for further coordination between departments and community stakeholders.
